Recount: Sherlock Marathon

Sherlock.

Sherlock, Sherlock, Sherlock.

Characters: Molly, Mary, John, Sherlock, Lestrade, Mrs Hudson

Just a disclaimer: If you were expecting the Robert Downey movie franchise, this would probably be the time for you to drop out (or you could stay instead and discover a whole new world of general epicness, your choice). Well, not that the movie franchise happens to be any less spectacular than the series to which I refer to, of course, though I'm sure you understand me here.

Oh, how could I possibly withstand uttering (typing) his name one second later?

Benedict. Cumberbatch.

If you aren't already a fan of the series, you must have heard of him at least once or twice - perhaps as the impossibly dashing guy who played 'Khan' from 'Star Trek Into Darkness', 'Major Jamie Steward' from 'War Horse' or simply as a talented performer from one of his multitude of successful plays?

Well, the role that has most (arguably) cemented his relevance, talent and endless sophistication has absolutely got to be his flawless portrayal of one Sherlock Holmes in the Sherlock UK Series!

Starring alongside Martin Freeman who plays 'best-friend-and-room-mate-but-not-gay-friend' (hashtag #Johnlock) 'Bachelor' John Watson, Benedict Cumberbatch plays Sherlock, a character based on (of course) the main protagonist from the 'Sherlock Holmes' series by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Sherlock is a proper genius (as Mycroft puts it - the younger brother also 'living in a world of goldfish') that lends his extraodinary intellect to solve heinous crimes and to offset his mortal villain protagonist, Moriarty, in his spare time.

Jim Moriarty

Which is almost always. 

After all, Sherlock Holmes does happen to be the world's one and only consulting detective.

Now, Season 3.

The seed of doubt is sown from the very first episode of Season 1, when Sergeant Sally Donovan tries to (and fails, because John apparently has a deep-rooted appreciation for sociopathic geniuses) warn John from sharing an apartment with Sherlock. As I recall, the semi-spiteful comment went something along the lines of 'one day Sherlock Holmes will be the one to put the body there, because even psychopaths get bored'.

Well, with such an obvious thread of doubt already implanted in Sergeant Donovan's mind, it was no surprise that she was first to turn on Sherlock when the plan to completely discredit him spun into action in the second season. No surprise that most of everyone who knew Sherlock personally jumped on board either.

Donovan and Anderson

The fact being that, whether we love him or not, Sherlock Holmes happens to be the most annoying, showy bastard to reside at 221b Baker Street (and we do love him for it).

Before I go on, here's a spoiler alert: (so do skip it if you're completely new to this and plan to watch the series for yourself)

Season 2 ends with a gripping finale - we were left wondering for a couple of seconds if Sherlock Holmes really killed himself to save his three friends, and then, almost immediately, after a brief moment of grief - oh wait, he didn't, phew!

But why? Why even bother?

Well, hundreds of eager Singapore Sherlock fans were giving the opportunity to find out just what on the big screen (no less) a little over two two weeks ago! 

AXN winners and other lucky prize recipients were given the opportunity to be the very first in Singapore to catch the first episode of Season 3 at Shaw Lido (well, 'first' unless you count those who downloaded the episodes over the net) in a 13-hour recap of the entire series.

Basically, this is what the programme outline looked like:

Programme Outline

The event kicked off at 9am with an endless supply of free popcorn and drinks for everyone that was available throughout the event. Breakfast, lunch, tea and dinner were all generously provided.

The organizers even went so far as to include props and a photobooth for the fans to enjoy! And that's not forgetting the life-sized cardboard cutouts of our favorite pair!

Totally excited to be there!

Benedict was almost too popular that day.

Participants managed to bring their pillows and blankets along with them to keep them snug and comfortable throughout the 13-hour marathon. It was a gathering of like-minded individuals with a (confirmed) shared interest enjoying their favorite characters on a movie screen. 

Prizes were even given out at the end - impressive prizes including a camera and a television set - with everything well-organized and fluently run by both the staff and the MCs present.

I shall end off here with just a tiny sneak-peek for those of you who have yet to catch it:

Season 3 begins with the knowledge that a timeframe of two years has flown by in-between. John apparently has a woman by his side, Mary, whom he plans to propose to. Anderson, riddled with guilt and regret, has become wholly obsessed with the idea that Sherlock is alive and has started up a (honestly) pathetic club for people to theorize how he might have survived. 

Sherlock is alive alright, but why did he leave? And why did he come back?

Expect everything.

All in all, it was definitely an experience I will not forget. Thank you for the brilliant opportunity, AXN! #AXNSherlock

I hope to talk to you sometime soon. Thank you for your time and patience. :-)